Oprah's Book Club Picks That Aren't Worth Your Time, According To Reviews

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Oprah's Book Club is formidable. From literary classics to some of the most talented writers of the modern era, she loves to select substantial reads with nuanced characters and robust themes. Just like Reese Witherspoon definitely has a preference for one genre in her book club, Oprah tends to gravitate toward literary examinations of class, race, and gender. From "Great Expectations" to Toni Morrison, readers can delve into her book pick list and expect to come out more worldly and cultured. 

"Her choices aren't leisurely, relaxing reads (see: 'The Bluest Eye') but they always leave their mark on me," observed one Reddit commenter. But, inevitably, not every Oprah's Book Club pick is created equal. Since its original founding in 1996, the media mogul has had a few uneven choices. While most of her selections command at least four stars on Goodreads, a few of the lower-ranked options may be okay to skip — perhaps in favor of one of the best Oprah's Book Club Picks of the 2020s.

Oprah's Book Club has never shied away from harsher realities, but sensitive readers may want to skip "Say You're One of Them" by Uwem Akpan. This book holds a 3.55-star rating on Goodreads, making it a relatively low-rated pick. Told from the perspective of children and teens, this collection of stories renders the horror and violence of poverty, genocide, and war in Africa. While plenty of readers and critics applauded the author for probing the dark side of reality, many reviewers said the images disturbed and haunted them long after they put the book down.

But it wasn't just the book's content that landed badly with reviewers. Readers found the novel's use of dialogue to be confusing. They also noted that the individual stories lacked clear narrative arcs and began to blend together for a disjointed, incomplete feel. "It was really such a disappointing book. I actually had a physical aversion to it," wrote one Goodreads reviewer. "Each time I tried to read, one of two things happened ... either my legs started moving around restlessly or I fell asleep."

"Vinegar Hill" by A. Manette Ansay explores the oppressive crush of Catholicism for one woman. Set in the American Midwest in 1972, this modern Gothic story follows a young woman cracking under the rigidity and guilt of her in-laws' God. This book about a dysfunctional family is dark and even violent, but those weren't the only reasons that Goodreads reviewers assigned it a relatively low score of 3.39 stars. Readers complained that the narrative was slow, with characters who displayed little agency, repetitive prose, and dour visuals.

Oprah loves books that are unafraid of life's harshness. Tragic stories have their place, but "Vinegar Hill" took this too far for many readers. "The only thing I can say about this book is it was the most depressing book I've ever read," wrote one Goodreads reviewer. "I don't care how the characters came to their circumstances, I don't care that it has the Oprah Book Club seal on the front cover, getting through the book was like going through h*** with these characters." Use your reclaimed time to dive into the all-time top-rated read from Oprah's Book Club, instead.

With 3.50 stars, Breena Clarke's "River, Cross My Heart" has one of the lowest Goodreads ratings of any Oprah's Book Club pick. Clarke's debut novel, which traces the story of a girl's death in 1925 Washington, D.C., left many readers confused. Though some praised the detailed depiction of historical Georgetown, many reviewers complained about the weak plot arc and confusing ending.

"A poorly written book," said one Amazon reviewer simply. "The plot takes the reader [nowhere]. No substance to the book at all. This is the second book that I am disappointed with as reviewed by the Oprah Winfrey Book Club." But it wasn't just the lack of a strong plot that left readers dissatisfied. One frustrated Goodreads reviewer felt the storyline was painfully bleak, writing, "Oprah! You're such a downer."

Though "The Twelve Tribes of Hattie" is a richly-textured narrative set during the Great Migration, it left plenty of reviewers put off by its heavy subject matter, which ranges from mental illness to sexual assault to alcoholism. This novel earned 3.51 stars on Goodreads, making it one of the lowest-ranked books on the Oprah's Book Club list.

"One star means you 'hate' the book. Hate is such a strong word that I can say it's a little 'over the top' in how I feel about this book, BUT not by much!" wrote one Amazon reviewer. "Mathis needs to find her 'voice' as a writer and pick a lane while she is at it. Putting everything in a book including the kitchen sink does not make for a fascinating read." Other reviewers agreed that, despite the powerful storytelling and interesting historical setting, the book suffered from a pervasive lack of hope.

In this historical World War II novel, a widow grieves the loss of her husband and grapples with the discoveries made after his death. But readers found "The Pilot's Wife" by Anita Shreve to be slow and heavy, with twists that felt chaotic rather than satisfying. Plenty of reviewers bemoaned the prose as stale and hard to get through, all of which contributed to its relatively low Goodreads score of 3.57.

"I was greatly disappointed to find that it was a potentially promising story with an incredibly belabored theme, uninspired plot twists, and superficial character development," wrote one Amazon reviewer. Several reviewers remarked that they felt no attachment to the characters, or investment in the outcome of the plot. Though Shreve is a widely lauded author, and even the recipient of an O. Henry prize, it seems this novel is a weak spot in her oeuvre. That means it's probably one you can feel okay about skipping.

All five of the books on this list have received their fair share of publicity and acclaim as a result of being included in Oprah's Book Club, and many are well-regarded. But for the purpose of this article, we looked at the hundred-plus books currently on Oprah's list and identified those with the lowest ratings on Goodreads and Amazon.

From there, we delved into the specifics of why readers didn't enjoy these books and rated them poorly. In most cases, these titles were considered too bleak in theme, hard to follow plot-wise, or featured characters that were difficult to engage with. That said, many also praised these books, so feel free to give them a try!